Stripped the contact paper and linoleum (really) from inside the kitchen cabinets, painted EVERYTHING. That includes the hardware that couldn't be replaced because nothing is standardized in our 1941 kitchen. Knocked out the useless backsplash in favor of white subway tile with black grout, glued galvanized sheet metal behind the stove. This is a small kitchen, so I added a stainless prep table next to the stove. It's our first home, so we couldn't afford much, especially as both the dying refrigerator and range hood had to be replaced immediately, but the small upgrades with an eye toward function and aesthetics make for a big impact.

Never underestimate a prior tenant's abilities to do poor work. If someone can paint over multiple layers of contact paper, they will. Be prepared for a simple paint stripping job to take much longer. But the good news is that poor finishing details will result in the "backsplash" being back-buttered with a minimum of mastic, so not so much patching to do after removal. Yes, this was my first time tiling and I loved it. Grout, on the other hand...

My favorite meal to cook in my kitchen:

Now that I have a functional and clean space, I love to cook Spanish food--I'm no longer cleaning splattered olive oil off of paint!